Dear Teacher,
I don’t know what kind of day you have had or week you are having, but I want to encourage you. Keep doing those every day things that you do. The every-day adds up. It is the day-to-day that builds into your awesomeness.
You don’t hear “thank you” enough. So let me thank you.
Thank you, Teacher. You do what needs to be done. You are changing the future one day at a time. You are awesome! Never give up! Keep on teaching and turning the ordinary into extraordinary!
Love, Teacher
Dear Teacher,
You are amazing. You know that, right? You give your students what they need before they need it. Almost like magic!
You work hard. You make choices for the best that students disagree with. You are patient. You are kind. You are nice. Even when you don’t feel like you can be.
You will seldom be thanked…especially by the toughest of students.
They will appreciate what you have done and are doing…one day.
They do not always have the words now to tell you.
So…this note is for you. Here are the words (unspoken) that your students aren’t ready or can’t say yet. They are still true.
Take them to heart. Be encouraged. Let a smile rise to your lips. It is okay. You can feel the pride. You deserve it!
Don’t give up! Do all that you do and keep doing it well. Keep on teaching, Teacher! You are AWESOME!
Love, Teacher
PS…Pass this one one to a teacher that you know needs to hear this! Also, please comment with a story about a time a student has been able to thank you for your hard work for them. 🙂
Dear Teacher,
I know that you are tired. Just know that all you do is worth it. You are making a difference! You are so awesome!
Keep on teaching, Teacher.
Love, Teacher
PS…Those that saw the first message last night…I updated the picture. The color scheme needed an adjustment.
Dear Teacher,
Only teachers understand the September Slump. The newness of the year has worn off and we are into the thick of things. We are tired and worn out, but we are still fighting strong. Here is a little rally message for your Semptember Slump.
Keep on teaching, Teacher! You are awesome!
Love, Teacher
Dear Teacher,
It is Monday. The start of a new week. It is a fresh beginning. You have arrived at the dawning of something that has never been before…this week.
Sometimes a new week of teaching can feel like coming to a big city for the first time. It is overwhelming. You know about the city and know where you need to go, but stepping on to the sidewalk can make you have to catch your breath at first. It is big. It is here. It is real. You have never navigated these streets before, and now you are here walking them. It can be a bit much, but you keep walking. You keep going. You find your way. You make it through. You make it possible for yourself to get better and learn the places you need to go. You press on until it is not a big deal anymore.
A new week can be very similar. You know what is coming up. You know some of what to expect from the week. You also know that there are new challenges that await that you haven’t been made aware of yet. If it is a big week, like state testing or something of that sort, it is even more daunting. You go over in your head what you need to do, where you need your students to get to, and all that you have to get done. Now it is Monday morning, and you are about to step into those streets. You have to brace yourself and make yourself keep walking.
Deep breath, Teacher. You’ve got this. Step out. Keep going.
You greet the week with all that you have. You have done this before. You have conquered other “big city” weeks. This one will be no different. You will do what you need to do. You will get your students where they need to be. You will take everything in stride and keep walking. You will keep going. You will survive.
This week has nothing on you.
Nothing.
Big cities are awesome. Weeks can seem awesomely daunting. But you are awesome-er. Your awesome is bigger than the biggest city and the most difficult weeks.
You’ve got this.
Step out.
Keep walking.
You are awesome, for real! You are amazing because you do keep going. You know what your students need and you get them to succeed. You are making a difference. Keep walking and keep on teaching, Teacher!
Love, Teacher
Dear Teacher,
If your students could make you an infographic note of your influence and the difference that you make, I think it would look a lot like this.
I hope that you realize how much you mean to your students, even though they can’t tell you yet. You may never know your true effect, but you are changing lives and futures. Keep fighting. Keep going. Keep teaching!
You are so so awesome! Please remember that you are today. When the going gets tough, awesome is still awesome…and you are awesome! Keep on teaching, you amazing Teacher! Oh, and share this with another teacher that you think could use this message today. Pass on the encouragement!
Love, Teacher
PS…I am working on a better format of the picture. This is the best I could do this morning because of scanner issues. Sorry!
Dear Teacher,
I have been so busy this month, can you tell? Sorry for space between notes to you! Hopefully everything will settle down after Christmas break. I hope!
Well, even though it is mid-week, I figure that we all could still use a theme song for the week. Click play and then read on.
The message is simple today, which I have been saying a lot lately…it is nonetheless true. 🙂
Don’t worry, Teacher.
School can be hectic. There is so much to do. There is so little time. Teaching is tough.
It is easy to get caught up in the cycle of stress. We get worn out. We start to let plates fall. The stress builds. We get even more tired. We let more plates fall. More stress. More tired. More broken plates on the floor. And the story goes on and on this way.
We teachers like to worry. Okay, we don’t like it, but we are drawn to worry. We have to worry. There is often no choice but to worry.
Stress is coworker. It is in our classroom. It comes in with the students. It comes in with the administrators. It comes in with our fellow teachers.
It surrounds us. It swallows us whole. It is the lurking monster around every corner. We walk on eggshells trying not to let it know that we are around.
Such is the life of a a teacher. Stress and worry.
And that is just the school stuff! I won’t even go into the stress and worry that comes along with the rest of our lives. Family. Friends. Life in general.
And all of this just gets magnified this time of year. I am writing this before Christmas, but pick the time of year and there is probably something to magnify stress and worry for us.
So what do we do?
We remember one thing…it will all eventually be all right. Everything’s going to be all right.
We can stress less. We can.
We can not worry so much. It is true.
We just have to prioritize and focus.
Easier said than done…but we can do it.
It is not a crime to let some plates drop. We can clean up the mess and move on. It is not a big deal. It just isn’t.
To quote my friend Pete the Cat when he lost one of his groovy buttons, “Do we cry? Goodness no! Buttons come and buttons go.” We can keep on singing our song!
Stuff, stress, and worries come and go. They do. They do not have to drive us to the brink. They don’t.
Don’t worry, Teacher. Every little thing is going to be all write.
Don’t worry, be happy.
It is okay to be happy.
Be happy today. Do it for your students. Do it for you. Find something about what needs to happen today and the rest of the week that makes you happy and let that drive you. Don’t worry so much. Be happy!
I know that you can! I believe in you!
As I said, I am writing this before Winter Break. If you are reading this before break, take the rest of the week and make it less stressful. Find a way. Be happier. It is okay. You are allowed to do that from time to time. You and your students will be better for it!
You are awesome and amazing, as usual. You can and do try to stress less and be happier. Good for you! You students are definitely reaping the benefits of it! You are making a difference in their life by showing them it is possible to stress less and be happier. They will need those lessons one day! You are so great and I believe in you so much! Go get it today and make today great! Keep on teaching, Teacher!
Love, Teacher
Dear Teacher,
You have today. That is it. Nothing else. Only today.
Yesterday is no longer here. Good or bad, it is gone. Celebrate it. Cry over it. Do what you need to do, but it is over. Done. Completed.
Tomorrow is just that, it is tomorrow. It is not here yet. The worries of tomorrow are always a day away. The promises of tomorrow are just out of reach. It is the future. Not yet. Not here. Not now.
You have today.
You have here.
You have now.
It is so easy to be wrapped up in what has happened (yesterday) or what will happen (tomorrow) that we forget that we have the here and now. We have today.
At any second, we can look around and take stock of what we have and make the best of it. Really, all we can control is what we are experiencing in the moment. Think about it. That is all we can do. Act in the here. Act in the now. Act today.
We can use the experiences of yesterday. We can learn from mistakes and successes. We can use what we have gained and accomplished. We can withdraw from the bank of yesterday, but we cannot go back and make deposits. We can’t be stuck in yesterday. We have to use yesterday to make today better.
Now, we can make deposits in the bank of tomorrow. That is certain. We can make choices today that make tomorrow’s today better. Don’t get me wrong. We do need to think about that. But it cannot be all that we do. Tomorrow never really gets here. We have to remember to live in today. Today is where we always are.
Today is it.
Today is a gift. It is what we have to give to the world. It is where we live our life and strive to make a difference. It is the now that lets us make tomorrow’s todays better and better.
It is a gift. However, it is only what you make of it. Will you make it something that you remember and can withdraw from in future todays? Or will you make it a weight that weighs you down? What it is up to you. It is all in how you use it. Your attitude determines so much of what today will be. How are you thinking about today?
Today is all you have.
What are you going to do today? What are you going to make of today? How will you change the way you look at today? How will you make today count? How will you make today be something you remember tomorrow and lets you be stronger in the next today?
How will you use today to change your students’ tomorrows?
How will you teach them to use today?
How will you model today?
Today is our gift.
Let’s give our today to the world. Let’s make it count. Let’s use it to change ourselves, our students, and our world. Let’s make today about making other people’s todays better.
Are you with me?
I know I am thankful for today. Today is mine. I want it to count. Will you join me in making today great?
You are awesome! You make every today count. I am so proud of you for that! You are so amazing! I believe in you. You are making a difference. Keep on living today and keep on teaching, Teacher!
Love, Teacher
Dear Teacher,
A little message for the end of your week. You are awesome! You have made it! Well done! Keep on teaching, Teacher!
Love, Teacher
Dear Teacher/Love Teacher 